Public Health England has been commissioned to investigate the issue, with communities secretary Robert Jenrick claiming there appears to be a “disproportionate impact of the virus” on people from BAME backgrounds.

“This may be because as your infection progresses and the virus infects more and more cells, the demand for oxygen in the tissues is much higher for an obese individual than it is for a lean individual,” said Dr Sellayah.

“Eventually the obese body becomes overwhelmed by the lack of oxygen getting to the major organs.”

Obesity may also trigger a “dysfunctional immune system”, causing it to release excessive amounts of immune-fighting proteins that lead to hyper-inflammation.

“It is likely the immune response to the virus is therefore ineffective in obese individuals, which may explain why people from BAME backgrounds, who have higher incidence of obesity, are vulnerable to the virus,” said Dr Sellayah.

Obesity also makes individuals more prone to underlying health conditions, like type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure.

While this may come down to lifestyle, research suggests certain ethnicities are more likely to develop different co-morbidities.

“Irrespective of body weight status, some genetic mutations that predispose to heart disease have been shown to be more prevalent in African Americans than Caucasians,” said Dr Sellayah.

“The demographic evidence is suggesting ethnic minorities live in larger family units, and potentially have professional and family lifestyles which make it harder to self-isolate or follow social distancing guidelines”, said Dr Sellayah.

For example, they may be more dependent on public transport, he added.